Side Hustle Rules in Ontario: Registration, HST, Licences and Gig Pay

In Ontario, a side hustle usually needs three checks and no big paperwork: register a business name only if you trade under something other than your exact legal name ($60 online), register for 13% HST only once taxable sales pass the $30,000 small-supplier test, and check whether your city licenses your specific activity. If you work through a ride share, delivery or courier app, Ontario’s Digital Platform Workers’ Rights Act also guarantees at least the general minimum wage for each work assignment. This guide suits anyone in Ontario starting a service, selling online, or driving for an app.

It is part of the province-by-province set; the side hustle rules by province hub compares all of them. For the detail on each step, see how to register a sole proprietorship, GST/HST registration for side hustlers, and how to report side hustle income.

Rule	Ontario answer	Source
Business name registration	Only for a name other than your own; $60 online, 5 years	Business Names Act s. 2(2), Ontario fees
Sales tax rate	13% HST	CRA rate table
When to register for HST	Over $30,000 in taxable sales in four consecutive quarters, or a single quarter	CRA
Gig app minimum pay	General minimum wage per work assignment or pay period, tips excluded	Ontario DPWRA
General minimum wage	$17.95 an hour from October 1, 2026	Ontario ESA guide
Municipal licences	Depends on the activity and city	Toronto business licences, BizPaL

Do you need to register a side hustle business name in Ontario?

Only if you use a name other than your own. Section 2(2) of Ontario’s Business Names Act says an individual cannot carry on business or identify the business to the public under a name other than their own unless the name is registered.

So “Priya Shah” invoicing clients needs nothing, while “Priya Shah Design” or “Northside Dog Walking” needs a registration. Ontario lists $60 to register a sole proprietorship business name online, valid for five years, and $60 to renew (Ontario fees). Ontario is one of the provinces where the CRA says a business number is issued automatically when you register with the province (When you need a BN), so check your registration documents before you apply for a BN separately.

Step 1: Decide whether a brand name is worth $60

A brand name helps if you plan signs, a website, or a business bank account. If you are testing an idea for a few months, your legal name keeps it simple.

Step 2: Search and register through the Ontario Business Registry

Search for the name first, then register online. Keep the registration and note the five-year renewal date.

Step 3: Open a separate account

Once money flows, keep it apart from personal spending. Opening a business bank account covers what banks ask for.

When do Ontario side hustlers charge 13% HST?

Once your taxable sales pass $30,000. Ontario’s HST is 13% on the CRA’s rate table, but the CRA’s small supplier rule means you do not have to register until your worldwide taxable sales exceed $30,000 in a single calendar quarter or over four consecutive calendar quarters.

Ride share is the exception: the CRA says self-employed taxi and commercial ride-sharing drivers must register for GST/HST even if they are small suppliers. Delivery couriers follow the normal $30,000 test. Ontario has no separate provincial sales tax to register for, because the provincial part is built into the HST.

Illustrative example

This is a teaching sketch with assumed numbers, not a forecast. A dog walker in Ottawa bills $2,000 a month. Over four consecutive quarters that is $24,000, under $30,000, so no HST registration is required. If the same walker adds pet sitting and reaches $2,800 a month, four quarters total $33,600 and registration is triggered. From then on, a $30 walk is invoiced as $30 plus $3.90 HST (13%), for $33.90.

Is there a minimum wage for gig app workers in Ontario?

Yes, for ride share, delivery and courier work done through an app. Ontario’s Digital Platform Workers’ Rights Act came into force on July 1, 2025 and applies whether the worker is an employee or an independent contractor.

The province says you have the right to be paid at least the general minimum wage under the Employment Standards Act, with compliance determined per work assignment or per pay period. Tips are not counted toward that minimum. The general minimum wage is $17.95 an hour from October 1, 2026 (ESA guide). The Act also gives you rights to written information about each work assignment, a regular pay day, and all tips collected by the operator.

The minimum applies to time on an assignment, not time spent waiting for one. Car costs and HST still come out of what is left, which is why food delivery pay and rideshare pay should be judged per hour after expenses.

Which licences and permits do side hustles need in Ontario?

It depends on the activity and the city. There is no general provincial “side hustle licence”; the federal-provincial-municipal BizPaL search lists permits by business type and location.

• City licences: Toronto says all businesses need the proper licences, permits and inspections before operating, and lists requirements by business type on its business regulations page. Many online services do not appear on that list.
• Dog walking in Toronto: walking four to six dogs on a commercial basis needs a commercial dog walker permit, listed at $305.99 for one year with $2,000,000 of liability insurance naming the City. See the dog walking guide.
• Babysitting and home child care: Ontario’s child care limits page caps an unlicensed provider at five children under 13, no more than three under age 2, counting your own children under 4. The babysitting guide walks through it.
• Food from home: Ontario’s home-based food business guide tells you to contact your local public health unit. The cottage food rules by province post compares Ontario with other provinces.

What are the common Ontario side hustle mistakes?

Most come from mixing up separate rules.

• Treating a business name registration as tax registration. The $60 registration does not register you for HST or change how you file.
• Charging HST before registering. If you are not registered, do not add 13% to invoices.
• Missing the ride share rule. Rideshare drivers register for GST/HST from the first fare.
• Assuming the platform minimum covers waiting time. Ontario’s minimum is tied to work assignments.
• Skipping the city check. Licences are municipal and vary between Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton and smaller towns.

Which tax rules apply to side hustles in Ontario?

The same federal rules as everywhere else, plus Ontario income tax on the same return. You report self-employment profit on Form T2125 with your T1, pay both halves of CPP on net self-employment earnings, and Ontario tax is calculated on that same return. How much tax to set aside shows how to estimate it, and side hustle expense deductions covers what you can subtract. If you want software to track HST and expenses, free and cheap bookkeeping tools compares options including FreshBooks.

This is not tax, legal, or insurance advice. Confirm fees and rules on the linked Ontario and CRA pages before you act.

Which guides sit next to Ontario side hustle rules?

Compare neighbouring provinces in side hustle rules in Quebec and side hustle rules in Manitoba, or go back to the province-by-province hub. For paperwork, read how to get a CRA business number and record keeping for side hustles. The free side hustle tax checklist puts the federal rules on one page. For local demand in Ontario cities, see best side hustles in Toronto, Ottawa, and Hamilton.

What are the common questions?

Which sources support this guide?

The rules, rates, and platform requirements in this guide are checked against these primary sources. Retail price ranges are labelled as ranges to verify locally, and they are not quotes.

• Business Names Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. B.17 — Government of Ontario
• Cost and time required to register, change or search for a business name, corporation or not-for-profit — Government of Ontario
• When you need a BN — Canada Revenue Agency
• When to register for and start charging the GST/HST — Canada Revenue Agency
• GST/HST calculator (and rates) — Canada Revenue Agency
• Taxi and commercial ride-sharing drivers — Canada Revenue Agency
• Your rights and protections as a digital platform worker — Government of Ontario
• Your guide to the Employment Standards Act: minimum wage — Government of Ontario
• Business Regulations, Licences & Permits — City of Toronto
• Commercial dog walker permit — City of Toronto
• Home child care and unlicensed child care: how many children are allowed — Government of Ontario
• Guide to Starting a Home-Based Food Business — Government of Ontario
• BizPaL: business permit and licence information — Government of Canada and partners
• Form T2125, Statement of Business or Professional Activities — Canada Revenue Agency